Nesting Ecology of the Spotted Munia Lonchura punctulata in

Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary (Southern India)

Author(s): Varadhrajan Gokula
Source: Acta Ornithologica, 36(1):1-5.
Published By: Museum and Institute of Zoology, Polish Academy of Sciences
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3161/068.036.0107
URL: http://www.bioone.org/doi/full/10.3161/068.036.0107

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ACTA ORNITHOLOGICA
Vol. 36 (2001) No. 1

Nesting ecology of the Spotted Munia Lonchura punctulata

in Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary (Southern India)

Varadhrajan GOKULA

7/153 A Gurumoorthy Nagar, Ammachatram (PO), Kumbakonam, 612 103, Tamil Nadu, INDIA, e-mail: goku-
lae@yahoo.com

Gokula V. 2001. Nesting ecology of the Spotted Munia Lonchura punctulata in Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary
(South India). Acta Ornithol. 36: 15.

Abstract. The nesting period of the Spotted Munia is from July to November, a period with frequent rains. Built
of grass, nests (n = 60) were spherical or dome-shaped, with a lateral entrance-hole oriented mainly along the
most frequent wind direction. They were mostly built on twigs within the tree canopy, the majority of them on
thorny plant species. The mean depth and diameter of the nests were 12.32 cm and 4.18 cm respectively. Nesting
activities were shared by both sexes. Four to six eggs were laid. The incubation period in 17 pairs varied from 10
to 15 days. All the nests (n = 60) were situated on four plant species only, the greatest preference being for
Toddalia asiatica (50%), followed by Gymnosporia montana (25%) and Acacia chundra (20%). Although 50% of the
nests were found on T. asiatica, this plant is a straggler and no nest was built on it if it was not present in associ-
ation with G. montana. For constructing nests the Spotted Munia selected short and small trees in a microhabitat
with low canopy cover.

Key words: Spotted Munia, Lonchura punctulata, breeding ecology, nesting, nest site, India

Received Aug. 2000, accepted March 2001

INTRODUCTION (JuneAugust) from the Southwest monsoon and

The Spotted Munia is a fairly common resident
bird and distributed almost throughout India up
to 1500 m.s.l. Apart from description of species
and some behavioural information given by Ali &
Ripley (1987), the ecology of this species is poorly
documented. Recently Sharma & Bhatt (1996)
studied the breeding biology. The study was car-
ried out during May 1995 to December 1997.
STUDY AREA
The Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary (1130
39N and 762743E) is located in the Nilgiris dis-
trict, Tamil Nadu. It is situated at an average eleva-
tion of 1000m. The climate is moderate, and tem-
peratures vary from 1417C during December
January to 2933C during MarchMay. The annu-
al rainfall varies from 600 mm to 2000 mm which is
received in two periods the first with high rainfall
the second with low rainfall (September
November) from the Northeast monsoon. The
sanctuary is drained mainly by the perennial river
Moyar and partly by various semi-perennials. In
correspondence to the rainfall, the vegetation
varies from thorn forest in the east to semi-ever-
green forest in the west. The study was carried out
in the tropical thorn and dry deciduous forests
which are dominated by species such as Acacia spp.
(including A. chundra, A. leucopholea, and A. ferrug-
inea), Ziziphus spp., Sapindus emarginatus, and
Erythroxylum monogynum in thorn forest, Tectona
grandis, Anogeissus latifolia, Phyllanthus emblica, and
Capparis spp. in dry deciduous forest. In recent
years, drastic increase in the human population in
and around the sanctuary has considerably altered
the thorn forest as majority of the people depend
on this forest for various resources. Details of the
study area are given by Desai (1991). During study
in total 60 nests were found in the thorn forest and
none were in dry deciduous forest.
2 V. Gokula
METHODS
A 10 ha plot was laid for the nest-site selection
studies in both thorn and dry deciduous forest
types. Searches were made for substrate suitable
for nesting. An active nest was confirmed if adult
birds were seen performing breeding activities
(nest building or renovation, incubation, feeding
the young) in or adjacent to the nest. The method
for determining nest-site selection was similar to
that applied in a number of nest site selection
studies (e.g. Bechard et al. 1990, Hullsieg & Becker
1990). Variables were set at three levels - nest,
nest-substrate and nest-patch:
1) nest height (m), length (cm), width (cm),
depth (cm), orientation, concealment;
2) nest tree species height (m), species girth
class at breast height (cm);
3) nest patch canopy cover (%), ground cover
(%), shrub cover (%), distance to settlement (km),
microhabitat (mullah, other), distance to road
(km).
Nest concealment was estimated by viewing
the nest at a distance of 2 m, 5 m, 7 m and 10 m in
each of the four cardinal directions (Martin &
Roper 1988). Based on the number of points
where the nest was not seen, the concealment
was evaluated as very low (04 points), low (58
points), high (912 points) and very high (1316
points).
A 15 m radius (0.07 ha) circular plot centred at
nest-substrate was laid for every nest to study the
nest-site selection as suggested by Titus & Mosher
(1981). Nest-patch variables were measured to
identify the microhabitat required for nesting.
Distance to road and disturbance on nest-sub-
strate were included to identify whether site
selection was affected by human activity. Lopping
and cutting signs on the nest-tree were consid-
ered as disturbance and measured in percentage.
Vegetation cover (shrub and ground) was visually
estimated in percentage. Canopy cover immedi-
ately over the nest was measured using a hand
mirror marked with grid and shaded area was
estimated in percentage as canopy cover (Martin
& Roper 1988).
To test for nest-site selection, except for the
nest measurements, all other parameters were
compared with similar measurements recorded at
randomly selected sites to identify the factors
responsible for selecting a nest-site. Random sites
were selected based on the place having potential
nest-sites and should also be close enough to the
used sites. The 20 ha plot established for nest-
searching was divided into 80 grids (5050 m).
Grids were plotted on an enlarged topographic
map of the study area and numbered. Twenty
grids were selected randomly by using lot system
and were identified in the study site. Once the
approximate grid or site was located, the nearest
tree or shrub was made as centre of the random
plot. Except for the nest variables, all other vari-
ables (nest-tree and nest-patch) were enumerated
in the plot as done for the nest-site.
Uni-variate analysis of variances (ANOVA),
Mann-Whitney U test, and other simple statistics
(mean and SD) were used where appropriate
(Sokal & Rohlf 1981). Results are reported as sig-
nificant if they are associated with a value of p <
0.05. The SPSS software (Nouris 1990) was used
for the data analyses. Principal Component
Analysis was performed on the nest-site charac-
ters to determine the most important factors in
delimiting the habitat niche of the species.
Discriminant Function analysis was performed to
identify the factors involved in separating the
nest-sites from the random sites.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Nest-morphology and breeding activities
The nesting period of Spotted Munia is July to
November, a period with frequent rains. Nests
found were globular or dome shaped with a later-
al entrance-hole. Grass blades were used to build
the nest. Nests were largely built on the twigs pre-
sent inside the canopy. The mean depth and
diameter of the nests were 12.32 1.39 cm and
4.18 0.33 cm respectively. Nesting activities
were shared by both the sexes. Only four to six
eggs were laid. Incubation period of 17 pairs stud-
ied varied from 10 to 15 days (11.8 1.6). Ali &
Ripley (1983) reported 16 days as incubation peri-
od for Spotted Munia while Sharma & Bhatt
(1996) recorded 11 days. The fledging period var-
ied from 18 to 22 days (n = 17, x = 20.23 1.30)
while Sharma & Bhatt (1996) reported 20 to 22
days as fledging period. The difference in the
period can be attributed to the changes in the
environment such as temperature, availability of
food and predators (Vijayan 1984) and probably
due to differences in the sample sizes.
Nest-orientation
By placing nest or its entrance towards the
most favourable direction, birds reduce their
exposure to prevailing winds, avoid direct expo-
 Nesting ecology of the Spotted Munia 3

sure to severe storms, or get the best insulation
conditions (Collias & Collias 1984), thus achieving
a favourable thermal environment. In the present
study, nest-holes were largely oriented towards
NE and SW (Fig. 1). Nests were found during July
to November a period with frequent rains from
SW and NE monsoon. Entrance of the nests found
during July to August (in SW monsoon) were ori-
ented towards NE and those found in later
months (in NE monsoon) were oriented towards
SW. As orientation were along the wind direction,
it can be assumed that it may be to avoid the fall
of the heavy rain.
Fig. 1 Entrance orientation (%) of nests studied (n = 60).
Plant selection
All the nests (n = 60) were placed only on four
plant species. Birds studied showed a high prefer-
ence for Toddalia asiatica (50% of nests) followed
by Gymnosporia montana (25%), Acacia chundra
(20%) and Zyziphus mauritiana (5%). No nest was
built on Toddalia asiatica a straggler, when it was
not associated with Gymnosporia montana. It
showed consistency in selecting thorny plants as
nesting substrate. Selection of thorny species
(Acacia spp, Toddalia asiatica and Gymnosporia mon-
tana) by Spotted Munia can be attributed to the
densely interwoven and thorny nature of the
those plants which provide sufficient structure to
support the dome-nest and also protect the nest
from predators (Collias & Collias 1984).
Nest-site selection
Nest-site variables were collected for only 26
nests that had good accessibility (Table 1). The
canopy cover (U = 78, p < 0.01), tree height (F =
13.876, p < 0.01), and tree girth class (F = 21.3914,
p < 0.01) differed significantly between the nest-
ing site and random-site (Table 1). The DFA (step-
wise) showed three variables, nest tree girth class
at breast height (0.48), height (0.40), and canopy
cover (0.57) as significant factors determining nest-
site selection. The species showed consistency in
selecting short and small sized trees in a micro-
habitat with low canopy cover. Three components
were selected as it showed 62% of the total vari-
ance (Table 2) and they were associated with:
1) canopy cover and shade over nest to the
positive points and disturbance on nest-tree to the
negative point;
2) ground cover and shrub cover;
3) nest tree height and girth class at breasted
height, and distance to next tree.

Table 1. Nest site characteristics (n = 26) and comparison with random sites of the Spotted Munia.

Parameter Nest site Random site p

Nest height (m) 2.23 0.64

Shade over nest (%) 23.64 20.77
Nest diameter (cm) 4.18 0.33
Nest depth (cm) 12.32 1.39
Distance from nearest tree (m) 2.87 2.11
Disturbance on nest-tree (%) 4.32 17.06
Concealment 4.77 4.4
Tree height (m) 3.14 0.78 7.0 4.82 0.00
Tree girth class (cm) 27.45 11.95 51.05 20.40 0.00
Tree density 4.0 0.87 4.15 2.03 ns
Ground cover (%) 70.9 23.89 83.50 32.97 ns
Shrub cover (%) 23.6 20.77 29.50 28.56 ns
Canopy cover (%) 38.4 19.72 78.50 22.95 0.00
Distance to road (m) 460.0 637.0 567.95 636.10 ns
4 V. Gokula

Table 2. Factor loading of various vegetational characteristics Collias N. E., Collias E. C. 1984. Nest building and bird behav-
with the first three principal components for the nest data. iour. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey.
Desai A. A. 1991. The home range of elephants and its impli-
Variables PC I PC II PC III cations for management of the Mudumalai Wildlife
Sanctuary, Tamil Nadu. J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 88:
Nest tree height 0.33 0.10 0.85 145156.
Nest tree girth class -0.23 -0.10 0.72 Hullsieg C., Becker D. M. 1990. Nest site habitat selected by
Nest height 0.28 0.04 -0.04 Merlins in south-eastern Montana. Condor 92: 688694.
Ground cover -0.20 0.87 0.32 Martin T. E. 1992. Breeding season productivity considerations:
Shrub cover 0.18 0.89 -0.21 what are the appropriate habitat features for manage-
Canopy cover 0.88 -0.04 -0.02 ment? In: Hagan J. M., Johnston D.W. (eds.). Ecology and
Shade over nest 0.79 0.14 -0.16 conservation of Neotropical migrant landbirds.
Distance to trunk 0.19 0.07 -0.01 Smithsonian Inst. Press, Washington D. C. pp. 445473.
Distance from next tree -0.36 0.49 0.56 Martin T. E. 1993. Nest predation and nest sites: new perspec-
Distance to road -0.47 -0.47 -0.31 tive and old patterns. Bioscience 43: 523532.
Disturbance on nest tree -0.71 0.14 -0.20 Martin T. E., Roper J. J. 1988. Nest predation and nest-site selec-
tion of a western population of the Hermit Thrush.
Nest concealment -0.63 -0.02 0.01
Condor 90: 5157.
Murphy M. T. 1983. Nest success and nesting habits of Eastern
Eigen value 3.30 2.54 1.58
Kingbirds and other flycatchers. Condor 85: 208219.
% Variance 27.50 21.20 13.20
Noursis M. J. 1990. SPSS/PC+: Advanced statistics 4.0. SPSS
% Accumulated variance 27.50 48.80 62.00
Inc., Chicago.
Sharma R. C., Bhatt D. 1996. Some ecological aspects of the
breeding biology of Spotted Munia Lonchura punctulata.
In most of the cases nests were constructed Proc. Pan-Asian Ornithol. Congr. Coimbatore. p. 91.
Sokal R. R., Rohlf F. J. 1981. Biometry. W. H. Freeman & Co.,
largely on shrub species that were densely grown
New York.
with other shrub or short tree species. It is also Titus K., Mosher J. A. 1981. Nest site habitat selected by wood-
evident that they largely preferred a combination land Hawks in the Central Appalachians. Auk 98: 270281.
of shrubs and trees to construct their nest. Vijayan L. 1984. Comparative biology of drongos (Family:
Murphy (1983) and Martin (1992, 1993) suggested Dicruridae, Class: Aves) with special reference to ecological
isolation. PhD. thesis, University of Bombay, India.
that the predation, which is the primary cause of
nest failure, should be the key factor influencing
nest-site selection. The Spotted Munia construct
their nest mostly during rainy season, hence STRESZCZENIE
selection of combination of tree species would
give better concealment through more canopy [Biologia gniazdowania mniszki muszkatowej
cover (within nest-plant) to protect the chicks w rezerwacie Mudumalai (pd. Indie)]
from the predators and from rain. Badany gatunek jest w Indiach do pospolity,
jednak jego biologi poznano niedostatecznie. Ce-
lem bada byo okrelenie sposobu gniedenia
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS si i czynnikw rodowiskowych decydujcych
o wyborze miejsca na gniazdo. Prowadzono je od
maja 1995 do grudnia 1997 na materiale 60 gniazd,
I thank Dr. V. S. Vijayan Director, Dr. Lalitha
w rodowisku wyynnego (1000 m n.p.m.) lasu
Vijayan Principal Scientist of the Salim Ali
cierniowego. Przyjto metodyk stosowan w in-
Centre for Ornithology and Natural History
nych podobnych badaniach (np. Bechard et al.
Society, and Justus Joshua Scientist of the
1990, Hullsieg & Becker 1990).
Gujarat Institute of Desert Ecology for their sup-
Gniazdowanie trwao od lipca do listopada,
port and suggestions.
w okresie czstych deszczy. Gniazda miay form
kulist o gbokoci 12.32 1.39 cm i rednicy
4.18 0.33 cm, z otworem wejciowym z boku.
REFERENCES
W wychowaniu lgu uczestniczyy samiec i sami-
ca. Zniesienia zawieray 46 jaj. Wysiadywanie
Ali S., Ripley S. D. 1987. Compact handbook of the birds of
India and Pakistan. Oxford University Press, New Delhi.
u 17 badanych par trwao 1015 dni (rednio 11.8
Bechard M. J., Knight R. L., Smith D. G., Fitzner R. E. 1990. 1.6). Pisklta przebyway w gniedzie 1822
Nest sites and habitat of sympatric Hawks (Buteo spp.) in (rednio 20.2 1.3) dni. Otwory gniazd byy skie-
Washington. J. Field Ornithol. 61: 159170. rowane gwnie na NE i SW (Fig. 1). Zaznaczyo
 Nesting ecology of the Spotted Munia
si zrnicowanie skierowania otworu gniazd bu-
dowanych we wczesnej lub pnej czci sezonu
lgowego, co miao znaczenie dla zmniejszenia
ekspozycji w stosunku do przewaajcych kie-
runkw wiatru z deszczem.
Wszystkie 60 gniazd byo umieszczonych na 4
gatunkach rolin, ktrych cierniste i gsto splecio-
ne gazie stwarzay gniazdu dogodn podstaw.
W wikszoci przypadkw byy to krzewy lub ni-
5
skie drzewa, wyrana bya te skonno do wy-
boru wspwystpowania drzew z krzewami.
Wrd 14 analizowanych parametrw miejsca
gniazdowania (Tab. 1 i 2) istotne znaczenie miaa
obecno korony drzewa nad gniazdem oraz wy-
soko i piernica drzewa. Autor uwaa, e gw-
nymi czynnikami wpywajcymi na wybr miej-
sca gniazdowania bya ochrona lgu przed czsty-
mi deszczami i drapienikami.
T. Cofta